FILE PHOTO: A smartphone with a displayed Micron logo is placed on a computer motherboard in this illustration taken March 6, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
(Reuters) - Micron Technology has started mass production of its high-bandwidth memory semiconductors for use in Nvidia's latest chip for artificial intelligence, sending its shares up more than 4% before the bell on Monday.
The HBM3E (High Bandwidth Memory 3E) will consume 30% less power than rival offerings, Micron said, and could help tap into soaring demand for chips that power generative AI applications.
Nvidia will use the chip in its next-generation H200 graphic processing units, expected to start shipping in the second quarter and overtake the current H100 chip that has powered a massive surge in revenue at the chip designer.
Demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) chips, a market led by Nvidia supplier SK Hynix, for use in AI has also raised investor hopes that Micron would be able to weather a slow recovery in its other markets.
HBM is one of Micron's most profitable products, in part because of the technical complexity involved in its construction.
The company had previously said it expects "several hundred million" dollars of HBM revenue in fiscal 2024 and continued growth in 2025.
(Reporting by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar)